Many people have bought tickets for the 33rd Macao Arts Festival (MAF) from ticketing sites since sales started on Sunday, the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) said in a statement yesterday.
Tickets for the opening performance Rite of Spring presented by Yang Liping and the closing performance, Patuá play Carnavaland, have been “highly sought after”, according to the statement. Meanwhile, the programmes On Substance of Time by the Portuguese Contemporary Dance Company and New Dragon Inn by the Shanghai Jingju Theatre Company have also been well received.
Patuá is Macau’s highly endangered Portuguese-Asian Creole spoken by just a few dozen people locally and a few hundred in the diaspora. Its vocabulary includes Portuguese, Cantonese, Malay, Indian, English and words from other languages. Its grammar is strongly influenced by Malay and Cantonese.
Themed “The Long Artistic Journey”, the statement noted that the festival features 20 programmes that cover theatre and visual arts, among others.
According to the statement, other programmes by well-known artists will also be shown such as The Miracles of the Namiya General Store directed by Liu Fangqi and adapted from Keigo Higashino’s novel; I Am a Moon by young playwright Zhu Yi; and the Experimental Cantonese Opera Farewell My Concubine (New Adaptation) produced by the Xiqu Centre, West Kowloon Cultural District.
The festival always offers various programmes for children and families time, with this year featuring The Ocean, an interactive performance for babies and toddlers, and paper puppet theatre “Paperbelle”, among others.
More details on the programmes and discounts can be found at www.icm.gov.mo/fam. One can also follow “Macao Arts Festival” on Facebook or subscribe to the Cultural Affairs Bureau’s WeChat account. For ticketing, one can call 2855 5555 or visit www.macauticket.com
This undated handout photo provided by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) yesterday shows people buying tickets from e-kiosks for the 33rd Macao Arts Festival (MAF).
